airline meals | Imamother

amother

Mon, Jul 23 2007, 1:44 pm

on airlines- other than el al- when you order a kosher meal- is it glatt kosher, mehadrin etc?

Ruchel

Mon, Jul 23 2007, 1:56 pm

I think it's just kosher and you shouldn't expect it to be glatt unless they say so. I like that in El Al you don't have to ask for kosher or check they really gave you the good, kosher one.

Warning: if travelling Pessach, do NOT trust their kashrus (and coming from someone not "extreme" like me, you can believe it). They served us kosher but non Pessachdik meals when we flew to America with my mother. You had bread, cake, pasta... I was Crying

and

and

to them, and my mom wrote to complain. They apologized the whole flight, but still.

Raisin

Mon, Jul 23 2007, 3:35 pm

Any flights I have flown on from the U.S to Europe (mainly to the UK) have been the same meals, berenstein caterers with a ou glatt. They are usually half heated, and the bread does not seem to be pas yisrael.

From the uk (and some other countries) back to the US, they serve meals by hermolis, with an excellent hechsher (kedassia).

They usually source the meals at the starting city, except el al.

Marion

Tue, Jul 24 2007, 1:39 am

Air Canada (as well as any of the other airlines flying out of Toronto!) get all their meals from Zuchter-Berk, which is under the COR. They will be either meat or fish; sometimes the airline serves (hechshered) ice cream with the fish meals. All the rolls are mezonot, but there is a note from the Va'ad that if you are not washing and being kovea seudah that you anyway shouldn't eat the roll. The meat (where applicable) is glatt, as I believe that's the only thing the COR approves.

greenfire

Tue, Jul 24 2007, 2:03 am

I didn't know they still gave out meals ... interesting ...

Marion

Tue, Jul 24 2007, 3:42 am

greenfire wrote:

I didn't know they still gave out meals ... interesting ...

They only give out meals on "non-domestic" flights over 5 hours. BEWARE: somehow "domestic" in the U.S. now includes Canada as well...which means there are no meals on flights from Toronto (or NY) to LA or Vancouver, even though they are over 5 hours!

brooklyn

Tue, Jul 24 2007, 10:43 am

Just take a little cooler bag with your own food. No need to woory about ant hechsherim and the food will tasted better that the **** they give out on the airlines.

greenfire

Tue, Jul 24 2007, 12:00 pm

about bringing the food ... don't forget there are restriction in liquids and if your food is even a yogurt more than 3.5 oz ... they may confiscate and do a search ... check with each airline for the details ...

GramaNewYork

Tue, Jul 24 2007, 12:06 pm

Please, Everyone, bring at least a sandwich or something with you when you fly (no liquid or yogurt) because it happens more and more often that they had a problem and there were no (or not enough) kosher meals. It has happened to us already on at least two airlines: Air Canada and Continental. Neither admitted it was their mistake. Continental didn't even bother to reply to my letter.

Raisin

Tue, Jul 24 2007, 12:52 pm

I don't mind bringing food for a short flight, but we recently flew transatlantic on a cheap flight which did not provide kosher meals. It was a huge pain. before this whole liquid thing, you could bring yoghurts etc no problem. Without being allowed liquids you can't bring all sorts of stuff (gel like texture is also liquid) and also you cannot bring the ice packs for your freezer bag. We were travelling with kids, so it's even harder. We even had to pay for every drink on this flight.

Pot noodles, although I do not usually eat them, are great for flights. My kids loved them, it is nice to have something hot, they won't go bad, and you don't have to throw them out.

GramaNewYork

Tue, Jul 24 2007, 3:19 pm

What are pot noodles?

Raisin

Tue, Jul 24 2007, 4:29 pm

Pot noodles - those tradition (or other brand) soups in a cup with noodles. You can also get cous cous, mashed potatoes, spaghetti etc You pour in hot water and 3 minutes later you have some hot food.

sarahd

Wed, Jul 25 2007, 7:57 am

I haven't gotten Bernstein meals in years (tfu, tfu). We usually get Weiss, which is glatt. As far as other hechsherim, you have to know your certifying rabbi.

We always take food along, regardless.

amother

Wed, Jul 25 2007, 8:21 am

I was shocked to discover recently that united airlines, from LA serves cholov akum
we went hungry for a good part of the journey because we couldn't eat the meal Exploding anger

Marion

Wed, Jul 25 2007, 8:59 am

amother wrote:

I was shocked to discover recently that united airlines, from LA serves cholov akum
we went hungry for a good part of the journey because we couldn't eat the meal Exploding anger

Why so shocked? Most meals (as far as I've ever seen) are fleishig, and are certified glatt. Again, AFAIK, most hechsherim outside of Israel are makpidim ONLY to certify glatt as kosher, for fleishigs. As there is a well-respected opinion (heter if you see it that way) that non-chalav Yisrael is perfectly fine in North America, there is no reason (financially) for an airline, or a va'ad for that matter, to go out of their way to provide the more expensive option.

cindy324

Wed, Jul 25 2007, 2:09 pm

I also just discovered, that the Delta flight I'm taking to Mexico City will not be serving food. It's a few minutes shy of a 5 hour trip!! It's such a pain, as my flight is early, I have to make sandwhiches the night before or get up extra early, plus I'm always nervous about tuna and such spoiling by the time I get on the flight.

Raisin

Wed, Jul 25 2007, 4:22 pm

Marion wrote:

amother wrote:

I was shocked to discover recently that united airlines, from LA serves cholov akum
we went hungry for a good part of the journey because we couldn't eat the meal Exploding anger

But why serve meals that a large proportion of the kosher eating population will not be able to eat?

Lechatchila Ariber

Wed, Jul 25 2007, 4:40 pm

Quote:

But why serve meals that a large proportion of the kosher eating population will not be able to eat?

exactly!

amother

Wed, Jul 25 2007, 5:06 pm

Marion wrote:

amother wrote:

I was shocked to discover recently that united airlines, from LA serves cholov akum
we went hungry for a good part of the journey because we couldn't eat the meal Exploding anger

I am not new to travelling, I've done plenty of it in my time and it was the first time I discovered cholov akum.
The fact is a large population DO keep chalov yisroel and I was always under the impression that they try to keep the airline meals to as high a standard as possible, regardless of the fact that not everyone eats every hechsher, but at least within the hechsher thats being used to make it applicable to all.
for example, fleishigs are generally "glatt kosher"
so milchigs should likewise be cholov yisroel

as to why I'm shocked, we started eating before I noticed the not cholov yisroel sentence on the packaging.
now for someone who keeps cholov yisroel this is very upsetting. We see it as damaging to our neshomas.
for someone who keeps cholov yisroel its like eating treif!
its worse then eating glatt kosher meat form a different hechsher.
we stopped eating immediatly and remained hungry untill the next meal.
it was not at all fair that we should have been given kosher meals that for us were untouchable.
We expected the highest standard in kashrus and thats not what we were given.

Quote:

As there is a well-respected opinion (heter if you see it that way) that non-chalav Yisrael is perfectly fine in North America, there is no reason (financially) for an airline, or a va'ad for that matter, to go out of their way to provide the more expensive option

they are supposed to make the meals applicable to all frum yidden, not only yidden that hold by a certain psak.
the fact remains that by serving cholov akum they are alenating and putting a stumbling block before a very large portion of frum yidden.

amother

Wed, Jul 25 2007, 5:08 pm

Quote:

just wanted to stress that there is a reason and that reason is as a said a few times that a large portion of frum yidden don't hold by that opinion